OUR TEAM
Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts’ mission is supported by a diverse group of full-time and support staff, fellows, and interns.
Stephanie Agnew, Co-Executive Director
Stephanie Agnew (she/her) is Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts’ Co-Executive Director. Stephanie is a Licensed Social Worker (LSW), having completed her Bachelor’s in Social Work (BSW) at Loyola University Chicago and her Master’s (AM) from the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. Stephanie was previously the organization’s Director of Communications and she continues to oversee all internal and external communications strategy and execution and works with the program staff to successfully implement our advocacy strategies. Before joining Chicago Appleseed, Stephanie worked as a Legal Advocate in the Cook County Domestic Violence Courthouse and as a Civil Rights Fellow at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights’ Regional Programs Coordination Unit, where her projects focused on policing in Delaware and prosecutorial discretion in Mississippi. Follow Stephanie on our blog.
Contact Stephanie: stephanie@chicagoappleseed.org
Hannah Cole, Future Justice Lawyers of Chicago (FJLOC) Coordinator
Hannah Cole (she/her) coordinates the Future Justice Lawyers of Chicago program of Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts and the Chicago Council of Lawyers. She is a senior at Northwestern University majoring in Legal Studies and Journalism with a minor in Gender and Sexuality Studies. At Northwestern, she is particularly interested in studying the intersection of the carceral state and gender. In her previous journalistic work, she reported on her community, legal happenings, and social justice issues with her local NPR station in Kansas City. She also worked with an advocacy organization in Kansas City which facilitated meaningful dialogue on contentious community issues.
Contact Hanna: hcole@chicagoappleseed.org
Naomi Johnson, Co-Executive Director
Naomi Johnson (she/they) is Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts’ Co-Executive Director. Naomi graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a BA in Anthropology and received their Master’s (AM) from the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. Before joining Chicago Appleseed, they worked as the principal researcher and project manager for a community-based participatory research project. Naomi is passionate about issues of racial and economic justice and believes that research is a critical step towards creating more equitable systems. Previously, Naomi was the organizations’ Director of Research & Program Management and continues to oversee all research and policy projects – centering community voices alongside evidence-driven approaches. Follow Naomi on our blog.
Contact Naomi: njohnson@chicagoappleseed.org
Ali Longbottom, Development Manager
Ali Longbottom (she/her) is the Development Manager for Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. She studied Psychology at Harper College and DePaul University, with a focus on philosophy and ethics. Prior to joining Chicago Appleseed, Ali worked in digital media, connecting large brands with independent media networks, as well as nonprofit education, helping K-12 students in the Chicagoland area build digital literacy skills. Ali enjoys reading poetry and queer theory in her free time, and she is committed to the alleviation of systemic injustices through grassroots organizing and community care.
Contact Ali: alongbottom@chicagoappleseed.org
Elizabeth Monkus, Senior Attorney & Project Director
Elizabeth Monkus (she/her) is the Senior Attorney & Project Director for Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. Elizabeth is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center. Prior to joining Chicago Appleseed, she was an appellate attorney, served as an adviser at the Writing Center of the John Marshall Law School, and was an instructor in Constitutional Law at Governors State University. Elizabeth came to Chicago Appleseed in 2010 to manage the Judicial Performance Commission Demonstration project. She currently focuses on domestic relations and judicial elections in her program work. Elizabeth’s family has been in Chicago since the Fire and she is thrilled to be working to improve the quality of justice in Chicago. Follow Elizabeth on our blog.
Contact Elizabeth: emonkus@chicagoappleseed.org
Jason Olexa, Operations Coordinator
Jason Olexa (he/him) is the Operations Coordinator for Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. He grew up within the walls of John K King Books in Detroit and studied Economics and Philosophy at Western Michigan University. Over a decade later, with a detour into automotive finance, his conviction that everyone deserves a fair day in court led him to Chicago Appleseed. Jason believes all books are beautiful and always stop to pet cats.
Contact Jason: jolexa@chicagoappleseed.org
Cora Patterson, Communications Assistant
Cora Patterson (she/her) is the Communications Assistant for Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. Cora studied criminology at the University of Northern Iowa where she developed an understanding of criminal legal system and a passion for its reform. Now a first-year master’s student at the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, she seeks to advance equitable social policy initiatives for historically marginalized communities.
Contact Cora: cpatterson@chicagoappleseed.org
Briana Payton, Director of Policy & Advocacy
Briana Payton (she/her) is the Director for Policy & Advocacy for Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. She holds her Bachelors degree (AB) in Sociology with minors in African American Studies, American Studies, and Spanish from Princeton University and her masters (AM) from the University of Chicago Crown School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, in the Transforming Justice program of study. Prior to joining Chicago Appleseed, Briana was the Senior Legislative Advocacy Coordinator at the Chicago Community Bond Fund and the Policy Coordinator for the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice. In these positions, she played an instrumental role in passing and protecting the Pretrial Fairness Act. Briana will continue participating in this work through Chicago Appleseed’s membership in the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, and will support our other initiatives that advance criminal legal system reform.
Contact Briana: bpayton@chicagoappleseed.org
Malcolm Rich, Internship & Pro Bono Coordinator
Malcolm Rich (he/him) is currently Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts’ Internship & Program Coordinator. Until March 1, 2024, Malcolm was the Executive Director of the Chicago Council of Lawyers (since 1987) and of Chicago Appleseed (since its creation in 1997). He is a 1979 graduate of the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, where he was the recipient of a Northwestern University Center for Urban Affairs Research Fellowship. Malcolm practiced with the law firm Whitted & Kraning, where he specialized in special education and mental health law. He chairs the Executive Directors’ Council of the Appleseed Network. He previously served as the Executive Director of the Foundation for Educational Research. Follow Malcolm on our blog.
Contact Malcolm: malcolmrich@chicagoappleseed.org
Austin Segal, Research & Program Coordinator
Austin Segal (he/they) is Chicago Appleseed’s Research & Program Coordinator. They will receive a B.A. in June from Northwestern University, where they studied sociology, mathematical methods in the social sciences, and legal studies. They are involved in student organizations that promote constructive dialogue and community organizing, and they wrote an interdisciplinary thesis with original research on the implementation of queer-inclusive educational policies. They are deeply invested in supporting those harmed by the criminal legal system and developing equitable solutions for social injustices.
Contact Austin: asegal@chicagoappleseed.org
George Chen, Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) Fellow
George Chen (he/him) is Public Interest Law Initiative Fellow with Chicago Appleseed. He is a recent graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of Cambridge Faculty of Law, where he received his joint JD (Harvard) and LLM (Cantab) degrees. While in law school, he has interned at the Wikimedia Foundation (who hosts projects such as Wikipedia) and Sidley Austin; volunteered for the Cambridge Pro Bono Project; and was a research assistant for two HLS professors. George is originally from Canada and holds a BBA from the University of Toronto.
Jennifer Won Young Lee, Jill Dupont Memorial Fellow
Jennifer Won Young Lee (she/her) is the Collaboration for Justice’s first Jill Dupont Memorial Fellow for judicial excellence and has been supervising Chicago Appleseed’s court-watching program since February of 2022. She also works as a Paralegal II for the Office of the Illinois Attorney General, where she participates in cases pertaining to state and federal anti-discrimination laws, wage/labor claims, and the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. § 1997e). Prior to her work in civil rights litigation, Jennifer was in the criminal defense field from 2013-2018, during which she worked for the Center on Wrongful Convictions, Center on Capital Punishment, Monroe County Public Defender’s Office, and more. Jennifer is passionate about judicial accountability, court reform, criminal justice, due process, and workers’ rights. As an avid believer in making the law a more equitable and accessible profession, she serves on the advisory board for the Wright College Paralegal Program. In her free time, Jennifer sings with the Chicago Bar Association Chorus, collects East Asian ceramics, and dotes on her two cats. Follow Jennifer on our blog.
Contact Jennifer: jenniferlee@chicagoappleseed.org
Esmeralda Suarez, Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) Fellow
Esmeralda Suarez (she/her) is a Public Interest Law Initiative Fellow with Chicago Appleseed. She recently graduated from the University of Michigan Law School. While in law school, she served as the Admissions and Outreach Co-Chair for the Latinx Law Students Association and was a student attorney for the Community Enterprise Clinic. Additionally, she was a Graduate Student Instructor for an undergraduate service-learning course. Esmeralda will be joining Sidley Austin in the fall, where she hopes to continue her pro bono work in access to justice efforts. Originally from San Bernardino, California, she obtained a BA from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Maya Simkin, Appleseed Network Fellow
Maya Simkin (they/them) is a recent graduate of Chicago-Kent College of Law. They have a background in farming and permaculture, and love studying Jewish liturgy and other radical texts. Maya is committed to abolition and is interested in learning how efforts in public interest law can contribute to liberation. There are lots of damsons to pick, pit, and preserve into compote this week and Maya continues to be impressed by the small fruit’s magic blues and purples, and even greens. Follow Maya on our blog.
Contact Maya: msimkin@chicagoappleseed.org
Mollie Guba, Intern
Mollie Guba (she/her) is a junior at Northwestern University majoring in Philosophy with minors in Legal Studies and Political Science. After college, she plans to attend law school and pursue a career in criminal or constitutional law. At Northwestern, she is also Senior Editor of the Northwestern Undergraduate Law Journal and has written articles on legal and social issues for the Northwestern University Law Journal Forum. This past summer, she interned in the Domestic Violence Unit at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, and she previously served as a community outreach coordinator for a legal aid organization in Massachusetts. Mollie is excited to gain experience with the criminal justice system and relevant policy issues during her time at Chicago Appleseed.
Grace Lester, Social Work Intern
Grace Lester (she/her) is an advanced standing student at University of Chicago’s Crown School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice pursuing a Masters of Social Work, and participant in the Transforming Justice program of study. Grace is particularly interested in advocating for deaf people who have been impacted by the carceral system. She has conducted qualitative research on the experiences of formerly incarcerated deaf people navigating carceral spaces and during her time as a student at Gallaudet University, she led organizing efforts to create platforms for formerly incarcerated deaf people to share their stories with lawyers, educators, and local politicians. She is currently a volunteer with Believer’s Bail Out and a contributor to Artist’s Against Apartheid.
Matthew Tuhey, Intern
Matthew Tuhey (he/him) is a second-year student studying political science at Northwestern University. Prior to starting his internship at Chicago Appleseed, Matthew has been involved with community organizing and grassroots activism in the Chicago area and Washington, D.C. Matthew looks forward to helping foster and improve the connection local communities have with their judicial system.
Erin Young, Intern
Erin Yong (she/her) is a sophomore at Northwestern University majoring in Political Science with a minor in Data Science and Legal Studies. At Northwestern, she is passionate about studying the intersection of race, law, and social advocacy movements. Erin serves as a law review editor for practitioner law review and a research fellow at Northwestern Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. In her previous work, Erin worked with the housing justice team at ONE Northside to advocate for equitable housing policies and support marginalized communities. Erin hopes to gain more experiences related to restorative justice at Chicago Appleseed.